Thirty meeting planners from organizations ranging from McDonald’s to the Young Presidents Organization shared a high-level view of meeting planning at Prevue’s Visionary Summit, held last Thursday and Friday at the Hotel Palomar in Chicago. Highlights included a session by Dianne Devitt of DND Partners on Designing Event Experiences for the Senses, after which roundtable groups had a chance to storyboard their own original meeting designed around a single color.
Jed Mandel of Chicago Law Partners shared advice on how to prepare for the unexpected in meeting contracts, while Mark Benson, president of Applied Meeting & Hospitality Solutions, took a deep dive into budgeting and RFPs. Other sessions included a panel discussion featuring EventWorks’ Janet Elkins, Kellogg’s Cecile Mutch and International Meeting Managers’ Lynne Tiras on managing change internally and externally. Open Space-style roundtables focused on topics chosen in advance by the group.
An opening reception in the Hotel Allegro’s clubby Savoy Room showcased socially responsible amenity options from HHR/Helping Hand Rewards. All attendees received a free pair of Revo sunglasses, with $10 from each pair going to support a Bono-endorsed charity, the Brien Holden Vision Institute, to stop to preventable blindness. A highlight of the evening was artist John Bukaty, who painted an original piece of art as the group mingled; the stunning end result was a beautiful woman standing in Chicago in the rain under a bright red umbrella. Bukaty creates paintings at corporate and incentive events, then turns them into giclees as a special gift for the guests.
Three of Chicago’s Kimpton Hotels rolled out the red carpet for the VIP group. Attendees had the chance to take a sneak peek of The Gray, the company’s newest hotel here, opening in two weeks.
Visionary Summit sponsors included AIC Hotel Group, Caesars Entertainment, the Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board, Naples l Marco Island l Everglades Convention & Visitors Bureau and Silverseas Cruises. Additional partners included Audrey Gordon Events, Dance Spectacular Productions, 360 Destination Group, Chicago and wet paint group.
